Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, FinTech and BlockChain

Privacy Hell, Also Known As The Internet Of Things

Internet Of Things – Today LIFE is all about connection and connected stuff. Some time it appears if no connection then no life. What was life just 10 years back; everything was so simple. I red some time back on facebook, “Life was very simple when Apple and Berries were just fruits, windows were just windows and Ice-cream soda & jellybeans where just deserts”. In today’s life its way beyond simple meaning.

What is the Internet of Things?

IoT (Internet of Things) is a network of physical objects embedded with software, sensors and connectivity. The “things” within this network, can sense, process and share data with each other. Current examples of this technology include shoes with gps tracker, Apple technology with watch and Google technology with wearable glasses.

From different research and market inputs and studies the estimated size of the IoT (Internet of the Thing) market vary with huge gap, For instance, Gartner expects it to include nearly 26 billion devices, with a “global economic value-add” of $1.9 trillion by 2020. Others optimistic are; The International Data Corporation (IDC), for one, estimates that the universe of things connected to the Internet will generate nearly $9 trillion in annual sales by 2020 Just to confirm , the IoT is not really a new concept.

We had and have machines like point of sales (POS) machines at retails or store since long etc. The technology transformation lies ahead in ways humans and machines interact with each other.

Internet of Things: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

AILabPage defines IoT device as any device or object i.e. can be transformed to IoT device as long as some how that thing can be connected to internet. Thus its called as Internet of Thing. These devices can be controlled from internet. Under the shadow of Internet of the things or simply IoT the way its known we have connected homes, cars, financial services, health, education, friends i.e. Connected Life.

Interestingly the devices/objects were never expected to be on internet or any internet connection which are now a family member of IoT. The objects can communicate on internet without any support or control of human. Point to note laptops, pc’s or even smart phones may not be considered to be IoT devices. Sadly in-spsite of all this; majority of human still struggle for basic needs like food, water, shelter, health services and education so where we are going, I am confused.

We claim we can reach our friends, our home etc from any where in the world. A correct perception of reality interestingly, friends sit together and stick to smart phones; chat with friends who are far but who sit next are taken for granted. We all have to slow down and take few moments to think more carefully about safeguarding our personal data.

What the Internet of Things means for people privacy ?

Payment or connected spending in my terminology people call it Mobile Payment. This market will be 79 billion dollar industry in 2019. My question is how much we going to give to 70% world population who don’t have even basic needs of course, perception can matter just as much as reality.

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Privacy – Not the Same as Security

In the past there were plenty of non-great places to work with no issue or privacy. Today almost every great place that has a lot of IoT devices are supposed to spy on you. Today in the name of security; we are compromising our privacy knowingly or unknowingly. What is needed to put right balance between privacy and security this understanding has lost. And many, no doubt, will continue to thrive. But all evidence suggests that this track is about to get much harder.

Big, deep structural changes in the economy are likely to boost the advantages that great employers already enjoy in the marketplace and penalize even more the companies that fall behind. We are yet not talking Artificial intelligence or Data Science or any Machine learning concept. IoT will definitely gets smarter and gain consciousness after getting machine learning algorithms. These clever things may not be necessarily considered as intelligent things.

New technologies, the way I am trying to understand and their contribution to the formation of our day-to-day activities, work and life. The accumulation of data into Big Data, after all is just not the data it self but use cases out of it. The bath tub thermostat now know when to be extra; because there is a hot date in there.

Connected or Online – Life

The Internet of Things includes anything and everything that is connected or can be change to connect to the Internet and able to communicate and share information with other “smart” devices. These include home appliances, fitness and health monitors & devices, all electronic gadgets, home security systems, Mobile Phones, Tablets, PC/laptops, Cars and water tabs.

in nut shell any thing and everything including your banking and financial portfolio details holding machines, lights, fans, audio systems, temperature control equipment, via any means in range from smart cooking pots and toothbrushes to GPS tracked shoes to wearable technologies like watches and clothing etc.

What are you’re doing …I can see you !!!

Somebody mentioned it to me some time back and I laughed then. The day you decided to come online you actually accepted “No to privacy”.

Now its even worse as we can even use radio signals to see through walls so no need to be online. Signals now can be used to check a person’s precise movements through a solid wall. Combing this with AI can take it to next level. How far we will go ?, may be can’t answer now. For sure these development has its pros and cons sides though.

The arrival of new era, IoT in the coming period will spread so much that it will enter into every area of our lives, we will become units in the internet world. We will no longer sit on our computer or browse on mobile phone.

Internet will become essential part of our life-like Air, Water and Food and would get into our life so much that we can’t be separated from this. Difficult to say will it be good or bad thing. At-least my day that is usually long began to give almost 90 percent of time towards Internet or on Internet & Mobile.

This article has contribution from Sheetal Sharma from her post from last year on linkedin.